


No Owner, New Life

by mimetime



Category: Garfeld: The Musical (A Garfield Parody), Garfield - All Media Types
Genre: (havent reached that yet), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic, Friendship, Gen, Happy Ending, Living Together, No Smut, Roommates, Some Humor, The boys have jobs, There's a twist!, Wholesome, Work In Progress, Workplace
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-05
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:08:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27398518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mimetime/pseuds/mimetime
Summary: Garfeld and Odee are adapting to domestic life together without John Arbuckle. However, they don't always get along, and when Garfeld goes missing after an argument, it's up to Odee to find him. Through the process, the boys learn a lot about themselves and their friendship.>> this fic is rated teen due to some violence & mature languageupdated feb 11; unfinished
Kudos: 1





	1. Missing

Garfeld was stirred from his slumber by a familiar scent. He sprang up out of bed and excitedly rushed to the kitchen, already wide awake. What he saw on the table made his heart melt, and he rushed right over to pick up the tray to admire the delectable heaven it encompassed. 

"Oh, _lasagna_! Sweet, sweet lasagna! It's been so long since I last had some." 

He took in a deep huff of its cheesy aroma before grabbing a fork to gobble it down with. 

"But we had lasagna for dinner last night," Odee commented. He discarded his "Kick The Dog" apron--a gift from Garfeld, of course--and got himself a bowl of bone-flavored cereal. 

"Yeah, and that was ten _whole_ hours ago!" Garfeld's mouth was already filled with the diabetic deliciousness that is lasagna. He looked at Odee with a puzzled expression before gulping down his first colossal bite. "Why do you still eat dog-themed stuff?" 

"Just because I'm an intellectual doesn't mean I can't enjoy a good bone-flavored meal every now and then... or an actual bone." Garfeld shrugged. To be fair, he did find himself pawing at a yarn ball or chasing after a mouse here and there too. "What's on the schedule for today?" 

"Let's see, hmm," Garfeld hummed, already having finished the entire lasagna. He wiped at his mouth and inspected the calendar, reading aloud, "Well, our shifts begin at 12 PM, and... Ooh! I gotta punt Odee at 2 PM." 

"You are not punting me." 

"I'll get you again someday." 

Odee checked the clock and sighed, quickly slurping up the milk left over in his bowl. He cleared the table and said, "It's almost time for work. We need to get going now, then. Vito's getting annoyed with you for always being late, and Lizz is getting pretty tired of waiting for us on the driveway every shift." 

"It's not all my fault! Maybe you shouldn't take so long styling your fur." 

"At least one of us has to look presentable, Garfeld. Maybe you shouldn't hit snooze on your alarm five times every day." 

They exasperatedly rolled their eyes at each other before heading outside. It was a warm, sunny day, with just a few clouds speckled here and there in the vibrantly blue sky. A gentle breeze whipped by, and Garfeld smiled. 

"You know, Odee, I kinda like life better nowadays." 

"I can tell. You only spend 10% of your time complaining anymore. That used to be at least 40%!" 

Garfeld chuckled, and Odee waved down Lizz when he saw her car turn onto their street. 

"Hey, Lizz," Garfeld greeted, hopping in the back while Odee claimed shotgun. Garfeld's cheery composure wilted when he saw who else was in the car. "And Nermal." 

"Hi there, Garfeld!" Nermal said cutely, batting his long eyelashes at the taller feline. "I'm modelling for Lizz's Animal Hospital today. Isn't that great?" 

"That _is_ great!" Nermal got a wide grin on his face, but it disappeared at Garfeld's next line. "It'll mean you'll be far away from me." 

They arrived at Vito's Pizzeria and dropped Garfeld off. He waved goodbye to Odee and Lizz, and ignored Nermal's attempts to get his attention. The trio drove off, and Garfeld went in for work. 

"Ah! Garfeld, there you are," Vito said with a friendly smile. "You're right on time today. Go ahead and clock in, I need you in the kitchen a-right away!" 

Garfeld did so and reported to the kitchen diligently. This part of the restaurant was easily the best part of working here! Whenever Vito was away, Garfeld could sneakily snack on as many ingredients as he wanted. Sometimes, he would even get away with full slices of pizza. He got to rolling out some dough right away, sticking his tongue out in disgust when he saw that this order called for anchovies. Some customers were just evil. 

Meanwhile, Lizz, Odee, and Nermal were checking into the veterinary clinic. Nermal went to stand behind the front desk. His cute face was a perfect first-impression, and Lizz didn't trust him with a scalpel, so he was always put on reception duty when he had a gig here. Odee, however, had quickly become Lizz's most trusted nurse. He had always had an interest in the medical field but never really got the chance to pursue it before he began speaking. 

Both boys loved their new jobs, and they were good at what they did. Garfeld, of course, was already a pizza expert before applying to the pizzeria, and Vito was pleased with how quickly he picked up on pizza-making. It was nice to finally have some help around the restaurant after running it alone for so long. Odee was also a very valuable nurse. He was able to translate what the animals said, and it made the diagnostic process go by much quicker. Garfeld and Odee had become the most trusted, and often most adored, employees at their workplaces after not much time at all. 

That midnight, Garfeld was let off of his shift with his paycheck, along with a free pizza from Vito. He got one whenever he behaved correctly throughout the whole week, and Vito felt that he had done great during all his shifts over the past five days. He waved his Italian boss goodbye and went on his way to the curb, where Lizz would always pick him up after work. He grinned and started eating out of the pizza box right there, feeling that he deserved a treat for a job well-done. 

Garfeld had eaten three slices by the time Lizz drove up. He hopped in and frowned when he was forced to see Nermal's child-like face for the second time that day. 

"Why's _he_ still here? Lizz, you always drop Nermal off first." 

"Nermal's staying at our place tonight," Odee explained. 

"Oh. alright," Garfeld said with a smile. Everyone waited for the followup. "... _WHAT_?! Nermal at _our_ house?? B-But he has his own house! He can stay there!" 

"My air conditioner was shut off. It'll just be for the night. I simply cannot sleep in this humidity, it does terrible things to my fur. Terrible things, Garfeld!" 

Garfeld groaned and looked to Odee for some validation, but the canine didn't encourage him. Garfeld deflated, realizing that he wasn't going to get out of this one. 

"What have you got there, Garfeld?" Lizz asked, seeing the box in Garfeld's hands from her rear-view mirror. 

"Oh! Vito gifted me a pizza for tonight's dinner." 

"Is it empty?" Nermal remarked, and everyone but Garfeld snickered. 

" _No_ , but it was going to be for me and Odee. And it still is." 

"C'mon, Garfeld! Be nicer to our guest," Odee scolded as Lizz pulled into their driveway. Odee thanked her for the ride as the other two made their way inside, bickering on the way there. 

"Good luck with them. You can call me if someone needs stitches," Lizz said to Odee, and they shared a laugh before Odee followed the felines inside, hearing Lizz's tires screech against the ground as she drove away. 

" _Really_ , Garfeld? You already ate half of the pizza!" Odee said as soon as the box was pried open. Garfeld grinned guilty, and Nermal whined. "No more for you tonight. We don’t have much food left in the fridge, so the rest of this has to be for me and Nermal." 

"No more pizza?!" Garfeld gasped. But how would he survive on only three slices of pizza?! It was _inhumane_! And further than that, this was totally Nermal's fault. Garfeld shot him a glare. He was shooed away by Odee, and he sulked on the way to his bed, tossing his blue blanket around himself. Maybe he could manage to sleep until Nermal was gone. That thought was an awfully happy one, and it soothed him right into a deep sleep. 

Nermal and Odee chatted a bit over the last few slices of pizza before they both performed their separate nightly routines. Nermal's was much more extensive than Odee's, but what's wrong with a little self-care? Once they were both groomed and ready for bed, Odee gave the guest a fluffy blanket and a pillow to sleep on the couch with before heading into his room to rest. 

That morning, the members of the house were woken up by a booming knock at the door. Well, all but Nermal, who was sleeping on the sofa with a sleep mask and earplugs. Odee was the first to make it to the door, and he groggily swung it open to be greeted by a well-dressed woman. 

"Uh, hello? Who are you?" he asked, his morning voice sounding gruffer than usual. 

"Hello there! My name’s Deborah. Are you Odee?" 

"Last I checked, yeah." 

The woman cackled much too hard at that, punctuating her laughter with knee-slap. 

"See, I knew you’d be a good candidate! I understand that the previous cartoonist who lived here passed away, very sorry for your loss... but we’d like to continue his comic series." 

"Who is 'we'?" he asked, looking around to see that nobody else was there. 

"Well, Paws Incorporated, of course! We employed John for years while he drew our top comic, The Garfeld Series. It would be a real shame to lose it, but we don't have the legal rights to it. We'd need consent from a loved one, such as yourself, to be able to use the characters John created. Here,"--she handed him a tacky business card--"just think about it, won’t you?" 

Odee inspected the card. Despite being typed up in Comic Sans, it had the standard info on it: the name of the company, the phone number, the address, etc. He nodded and promised he’d look into it, before sending the Paws Inc. worker on her merry way. When he turned around, he was started by Garfeld standing there, looking half dead with drowsiness. He screamed and dropped the card right on the floor. 

"Jesus!" Garfeld exclaimed, eyeing Odee like he was crazy before bending to pick up the card. He look it over judgementally. "What the hell is this?" 

"It’s a business card from Paws Incorporated. They want us to continue John’s comic." 

" _John’s_ comic? C’mon, we all know I’m the one who came up with most of those punchlines." 

"That’s true, but he’s the one who drew it. And we don’t have an artist now, and I know you can’t draw." 

Garfeld grinned bashfully. It was true his drawings were kind of a mess, and though Odee’s were a step up from his, they weren’t nearly as good as John’s. Gears turned in Garfeld's mind, and he snapped his fingers when he remembered something about a friend of his who conveniently happened to live in this house. 

"I’ve got just the man for the job," Garfeld said with a smile, rushing around the corner to kneel down at a hole in the wall. He knocked on the wall and heard some scampering before out came a little grey mouse holding a tiny coffee mug that had "Cheesed to meet you!" printed on it in an awful shade of yellow. 

"Squeak!" 

"Morning, Garfeld. What’s all the commotion about? Did a stray cat get in again?" 

"No stray cats," Garfeld promised, handing over the business card. "But you said you know how to draw, right? Do you think you could maybe... Oh, I dunno... Become the new artist for Garfeld? Or something?" 

"You mean John’s comic?" 

"Oh my _god_ , it’s not even his comic! Is it called The John Series? No, it’s called The Garfeld..." He trailed off when he saw Squeak gazing up at him with an unimpressed expression. "Ahem. Yes, that comic. Could you do it?" 

"I dunno, Garfeld... Something about drawing a dead murderer telling jokes about lasagna just doesn’t feel right." 

Odee shrugged and nodded his head in passive agreement, monitoring the conversation from overhead. 

"What? But he’s a _huge_ character, Garfeld needs John!" 

"You haven’t needed him in real life," Squeak mentioned. "I don’t see why the comic wouldn’t be able to survive without him if you can." 

Garfeld crossed his arms and thought about it for a moment with a hum. 

"...Fine. We can get rid of John. Then will you do it, Squeak?" 

"As long as I get a fair share of the money, I don’t see why not." 

They’d take it! Garfeld and Odee fist-bumped each other, and Garfeld rushed over to the phone to call the contact number from the card. It rang a few times before someone picked up on the other line. 

"Hello, you’ve reached Paws Incorporated! How may I help you?" 

"Jerome! Good to hear from you." 

"Garfeld? Is it really you?" 

"In the flesh." 

Jerome cackled the same way Deborah had; way too hard. Seriously, what's with these people's humor? 

"I haven’t heard from you since... Oh, right. How are you doing after everything?" 

"Actually... I’m doing pretty good. I got a new job at Vito’s, Arlene and I are doing well, and--" 

"Ahem!" Odee interrupted, knowing Garfeld could talk for hours if he let him get too off-topic. 

"Oh, right. Um, I’m calling to ask about continuing the Garfeld comic? Debbie said you guys were interested." 

"Oh, yes! Yes, this is great. I’ll transfer you to Jimmy right away." 

Some copyrighted music played for the next minute while Garfeld waited to talk to the head of Paws Incorporated, tapping his foot anxiously against the ground. The music paused, and Garfeld held his breath. 

"What’s this about?" a grizzly voice came from the other end of the line. 

"Jimmyyy! This is Garfeld, I’m calling to accept your job offer." 

"Ah. Garfeld, huh? I’m going to need you to come into the office to sign some papers to solidify your employment at my company. Be here by 7 AM tomorrow." 

"I--" The phone beeped as the call went dead. "Jim? Hello? ...Hellooo?" Garfeld sighed and turned to Odee with despair swimming in his aqua eyes. "He wants us to be there at 7 in the morning! I-I haven’t gotten up that early since... since... Odee, I’ve _never_ gotten up that early!" 

"Garfeld, I get up at 7 literally every morning to read a book in my library. I promise you will survive." 

"You _what_?? Why would you torture yourself like that? Even John wasn’t that crazy..." 

"Nope, John _also_ got up at 7 AM every morning, to draw and send out the daily comic strip. And that’s the job you just signed Squeak up for." 

Garfeld screamed in horror. It was loud enough to shake the house, and even with his earbuds in, Nermal shot up from his sleep. He pulled his mask off and grumbled. It took no time for him to stomp over to the other two. 

"Garfeld, what is the meaning of this? Do you have any idea how important my beauty sleep is?!" 

Garfeld could just about strangle him, and he seriously considered it for a split second. Instead, Odee explained Garfeld’s problem to Nermal and apologized for the rude awakening. Nermal’s well-plucked eyebrows furrowed. 

"Garfeld, you lazy cat! You should be getting up in the morning anyway. It’s a miracle that you even have that job at that pizzeria when all you do is sleep in." 

"You don’t get to talk! All you do is smile at a camera and get paid," Garfeld shot back. The two glared at each other before Odee stuck a hand between them. 

"Cool it, you two! Why can’t you manage to get along for just one day?" 

"He’s too annoying!" they said in unison, pointing at each other. 

Nermal looked up at the taller boys with his wide, innocent eyes. "Me? Annoying? I’m a celebrity, Garfeld. People would pay to be in the same room as me.. and they _do_." 

"Once I take over the Garfeld comics, I’m going to be way more popular than you." 

"Oh, really? But even _your_ fans adore me, you can’t deny that!" 

"No, I can't, but I _can_ remove you from the comic." 

Nermal gasped and stared at Garfeld with a shocked face. "You wouldn’t!" 

"What? Give me one good reason I shouldn’t." 

"This cute face brings in fans--" 

"No," Garfeld interrupted, "corny jokes about lasagna and Mondays bring in fans. _My_ face brings in fans, and so do my jokes. Nobody thinks of you when they think of Garfeld, admit it." 

Nermal’s lip trembled, tears prickling his eyes. "I can’t believe you, Garfeld! First, you wouldn’t let me be in your musical, and now you won’t let me be in the comic?! You are so self-centered!" He stomped his foot onto the ground angrily and stormed out of the house. 

"...Did _Nermal_ just call me self-centered?" He looked over at Odee, expecting a laugh. Instead, Odee looked at him with a cross expression. "Oh c’mon, that was funny." 

"You need to stop being so mean to Nermal." Garfeld tsked. 

"I don’t want to have an argument with you, too. It’s just Nermal, he’ll be admiring himself in some puddle on the road within the next few minutes." 

"Gar--" Odee’s scolding was interrupted by a _DING_! He pulled out his phone and groaned. "Shit, a text from Lizz. There’s an emergency at work, I’ve gotta go." He rushed outside, leaving Garfeld stuck with his sour mood. The orange feline muttered curses under his breath, his temper rising like bubbles in a pot. Eventually, it’ll always boil over. 

"FUUUCK! GRRAHHHGGHHH!!!" Garfeld yelled out, kicking the wall hard and repeatedly enough to hurt his toes, even through his shoes. 

Squeak rushed out to see what was going on. "Garfeld! Are you okay?!" Garfeld crossed his arms and slumped, looking down at Squeak with a pout. "Oh..." Squeak had seen Garfeld mope like this before. He often got like this after any bad argument, especially with Odee. The mouse figured he would be able to sort it out on his own, and retreated back into his hole, simply advising Garfeld to "take a chill pill". 

  
  


When Odee arrived at Lizz's Animal Hospital, he roughly shoved his nursing outfit on and slammed the patient’s info onto the counter loudly enough for a bang to echo through the room. 

"Odee! What the hell?" 

"Garfeld is the hell!" Odee shouted. "Garfeld is hell to live with, living with Garfeld is hell." 

"I take it Nermal’s visit didn’t go very smoothly." 

"It never does!" 

"You’ll have to tell me about it later. Here comes our patient now." 

A fox was rushed in on a stretcher, his worried owner at his side. Odee skimmed his info sheet as he was placed on the operation table, which Lizz had already fully prepared for the operation. The report revealed that this patient had suffered a bear attack and was in critical condition, but it really only took a look at him to see that. 

"Odee, I need saline and gauze pronto." 

Odee snapped out of it and handed Lizz the tools she needed, focusing his attention on the operation. The urgency of it took Odee’s mind completely off of Garfeld, but the stress of the procedure only added to Odee’s anxieties. It, quite literally, took all day. They worked on the patient until the sun had lowered from the sky, and stars had appeared in its place. There were a few close calls where the patient was losing blood at a rapid pace, but ultimately, they were able to save him... though he was thoroughly disfigured. 

Lizz had left the room to tell the patient’s owner, and Odee finally got a chance to slow down and think again. He looked down at the fox's orange fur, much of it mattered and ripped out, and sighed. He couldn't help but think of the orange tabby he had bickered with this morning. As much of a bother as Garfeld could be sometimes, he was Odee's _best_ friend. He couldn’t imagine a life without him. And they’d already lost John this year; they don’t need to lose each other too. 

Just then, Lizz returned with the fox’s owner. 

"It’ll take a few months for him to fully heal from his injuries, and he'll have to spend the night here just in case," Lizz said. 

"Can I stay here with him?" the owner asked. 

"Yes, of course. This clinic is open 24/7." 

"Thank you so much, doctor," the lady said, teary-eyed. She took a seat beside her pet, holding his paw as he slept. 

"I’ve got to get back home," Odee said. 

"My shift is over in just a few minutes. I can drive you if you’d like." 

"That’d be great... Hey, do you think we can stop by that doughnut shop along the way? I’ll buy you one in return." 

"Sounds like a deal," Lizz said. "You have a good night, ma’am. Another vet will be here in just a few minutes to keep tabs on your pet here." 

The woman thanked her, and she and Odee left the building. As she’d promised, Lizz dropped Odee off at the doughnut shop, and as he’d promised, he came out with a chocolate doughnut for her. Of course, he also had a full box of sugary, sprinkled doughnuts for Garfeld to enjoy. The veterinarian drove him home and they wished each other a good night before Odee went on in. 

"Garfeld! I’m home!" Odee called. He tilted his head curiously when he got no response. " _Garfeeeld_? ...Garfeld?" 

He set down the box and searched around the house but found no trace of the cat, not even a crumb. He grumbled, feeling run down from all of the events of today. He thought about just dismissing it for the night. Garfeld was probably just on a midnight jog... 

...Yeah, Odee didn't believe that either. 

He rushed to the only place he hadn’t checked: Garfeld’s bedroom. Garfeld never really appreciated Odee going in there, but it was his last hope. He opened the door and sighed in relief when he saw a lump under Garfeld’s blanket. 

"Garfeld, you scared me half to death! Get up, I’ve got something for you." There wasn’t any response, and Odee sighed and approached the bed with an earnest expression. "Look... I’m really sorry about how I acted this morning. I should’ve listened to you more. It’s alright, I get that Nermal can get a bit"--he flipped the blanket off of the sleeping figure--" _Nermal_?!" 

Ear-plugged as usual, Nermal didn’t hear Odee. But Odee quickly tugging the plugs right from his ears and growled, "What the fuck are you doing in Garfeld’s bed?" 

Nermal grumbled and removed his sleeping mask, taking his sweet time to rub at his eyes and yawn. It would've been adorable in a different context.

"Nermal! Where is Garfeld?" 

"Who now?" 

" _Nermal_." 

Odee only used that tone when he wanted to let others know he wasn't fucking around. It poked at Nermal's fight or flight instincts, and he sat up in Garfeld's bed. 

"When I came back here, Garfeld was gone. I wasn't going to sleep on the couch when there was a perfectly good bed here, so here I am laying in it. Can I go back to sleep now?" 

"When did Garfeld leave?" 

"I dunno. I wasn't here." 

"So you've just been sleeping in his bed while he's missing?" 

"Yep," Nermal said, snapping his sleep mask back on. "Nighty-night." 

Odee lifted the small boy out of his friend's bed. 

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" Nermal was dragged and thrown out onto the street. 

"You're either going to help me find Garfeld, or you're not staying here anymore." 

"Come on, Odee! It's like, 130 degrees in my house right now. And I don't have other friends who'll let me stay over anymore..." 

"Did you drive their roommates out of the house too?" 

"Hey! I wasn't the only one who upset Garfeld this morning. This is your fault, too." 

"Who cares! We don't have time to argue about this; we need to find him. You go that way, I'll go this way. Check places Garfeld usually visits and call me if you find anything." 

"Ugh, fine..." Nermal grumbled, turning on his heel to embark on his search for the flabby tabby. Odee hmphed and went on his way as well, keeping a keen eye out for any glimpse of the color orange. Being not entirely human, neither of the boys really needed flashlights to see in the dark. There were a few false calls for them both, with Nermal mistaking an orange rug hanging on a gate for Garfeld and Odee thinking he'd found him, only to discover it was just a giant pumpkin. 

After a few hours, Odee felt his eyes becoming teary. His lip quivered, and he wiped at his eyes, trying to hold it together. Garfeld needed him to be strong right now. Odee knew there was a chance that Garfeld was totally fine, but there was also a chance he was totally _not_. Every day at work, Odee saw injured animals, and the patient today really had shaken him up. He'd become so much more aware of all of the dangers in their area, and who knows how far Garfeld might be from home by now? What if he's hurt? What if he's lost with no way home? What if the last thing Odee did with Garfeld was fight? 

Odee had tried calling his number at least a hundred times along the way, but he never got an answer. He left increasingly frantic voicemails for the feline but never received so much as a text in return. Sure, Garfeld had his moods, but he would never leave Odee to just worry like that. He wasn't _that_ cruel. Despite everything, Odee knew that Garfeld really did care about him too. 

That's the thought that was the last straw for Odee; he completely broke down. He plopped down onto the sidewalk, crying out Garfeld's name one last time before he let the tears overcome him. His heart strained, and his head pounded, and his body shook. He just couldn't get the image out of his head: his dearest friend, mauled and lifeless. Just lying there half-eaten and discarded. 

Odee's phone rang, interrupting him from his sorrows. He sniffled and saw that Nermal was calling him. He answered right away and said with a shaky voice, "Nermal! Did you find him?" 

A laugh came from the other end of the call. 

"No, _Nermal_ didn't find anyone." 

A chill ran down Odee's spine. That wasn't Nermal's voice. No, not at all. But there's no way that could be... 

"... _John_?" 


	2. Killer(s)

"Thaaat's right," John said, and Odee could _hear_ the grin he had on his face. 

"B-But... but you--" 

"Died? Oh, Odee, you poor, naive, _stupid_ mutt. Did you really think I was dumb enough to fall for your little trick involving Pooky? I knew what you were up to, and I faked my death. It gave me the time to really flesh out my plans. And for these past few months, I've been sitting back and watching you idiots go on living without me, waiting for my moment to strike. And that moment is now." 

"Garfeld... _You_ took him! You... I swear to god, if you hurt him, John... I'll fucking kill you!" 

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves here. Your feline friend is very much alive. Well, _one_ of them is, anyway," John said, closing the dumpster in front of him over Nermal's dead body. He tossed away his bloodied gloves and started down the alley with Nermal's cell pressed against his ear. "You see, Nermal wasn't at all happy to see me again, and I thought that was very, very impolite. So you know what I did? I took a knife... and I _SLIT_ HIS _THROAT_ OPEN!" 

Odee felt the blood drain from his face as John broke out into a crazed laughter. It's not like Nermal was perfect, but he wasn't a monster either. He didn't deserve to be _murdered_. Odee's teeth clenched tight together and he shook with rage at John's sick enjoyment of this. 

"FUCK you, John, fuck you, _fuck_ you!!" 

Usually so articulate, the canine couldn't come up with anything more elaborate than screaming that phrase into his phone. John stood there with a wide smile on his face as he waited for Odee to finish, and he giggled with pure glee when he heard his voice get wobbly with emotion. 

"Where is Garfeld?" 

He didn’t get a response. The silence was sickening, and he repeated his question over and over again until he heard something crash to the floor behind him. He nearly jolted out of his skin and looked back to see a phone on the floor. His gaze quickly rose up to John’s grinning face looming over him. He felt his heart go cold, dropping right into his stomach, but John didn’t give him any time to react as he lunged at him, a bloody knife in hand. 

The blade sunk into Odee’s shoulder and he screamed, shooting up to his feet and stumbling back. He held out his hand instinctively, while grabbing the wound with his other. John smirked and took a step forward, sending a shock of terror through the canine. Emotions ran through him like electricity, and before he knew it, he had chosen fight over flight and lunged at John, surprising him and knocking him off his feet. The lanky man held tightly onto his knife and took another stab at Odee, who caught the blade in his fist to prevent it from going into his chest. He grimaced in pain as the blade sunk into his palm and hurriedly pinned John down. 

“You fucking pest! Let me go!” John growled, struggling under his grasp. He tried to hold onto the knife but Odee managed to rip it from his grasp, his upper-hand coming from the fact he'd always been stronger than John, mixed with how incredibly livid he felt. Both men could feel their hearts hammering in their chest, but still, John looked up at Odee and laughed. Odee's ears picked up on the fear in his tone when he said, “W-What, you’re gonna kill me? What happened to you being so against the whole killing thing I had going?” 

_“_ I’m against killing _innocent people_ ,” Odee corrected, his snarled tone sending John into a cold sweat. Odee could feel anger coursing through his veins, making his eyes appear widened and crazed. His head pounded with rage, and he could feel gush after gush of blood flooding through his veins like it was running from something dastardly, something deadly. The lankier of the two trembled under the canine as he watched the knife rise up into the air between both of Odee's shaky hands. “ _You_ , on the other hand... You're nothing but _fucking_ trash!” 

With that, he brought the knife down with every amount of force he had, piercing it into John’s chest. John wailed out in pain and finally managed to push Odee off of him, immediately squirming away with a hand cupping his chest. The knife stuck out from him, buried into his flesh all the way down to the handle, and blood was already gushing from the puncture. John gasped for breath as he cried. _Shit_ , he was really going to die. He was going to die, he was going to die, he was going to... With one last desperate sliver of hope, he looked up at Odee. 

“O-Odee--agh, _FUCK_...! H-Help me! Please... I-I’m s-so--sorry, I don’t... I-I don’t want to die!" His voice wavered in tune with his tears and tremors. It hurt so bad, so _fucking_ bad, and John had never felt so terrified in his life. He felt terror grip at every cell in his body, enveloping him like a dark mist. It stung, it burned, it hurt. _God_ , it hurt.

Odee looked down at the man pitifully trying to crawl towards him, a river of tears streaming down his face. He felt his heart wrench and heard the pulse in his ears, feeling sickened as his stomach flipped itself entirely around. John, the man... the _human being_ who had raised Odee, who had made him feel so loved for so many years... was dying right in front of his eyes. And it was _his_ doing.

Nothing could take away the years of good memories they had together. _Nothing_ John could do could erase the loving family that they had all been a part of for the majority of each of their lives. So when John tugged desperately--albeit weakly--at Odee’s pant leg, he felt his will snap and dropped to his knees, hastily lifting the man up off of the ground. His blood pooled through his shirt, dripping rapidly onto the floor with a _pitter-patter_ as Odee rushed him towards a house he knew was in this very neighborhood. John clung onto him weakly until he went unconscious. His lungs continued to heave in shallow breaths on their own while his muscles went limp. Once Odee made it to the aforementioned house, he banged on the door frantically. 

“LIZZ!" he shouted. His call echoed throughout the dead of night, surely waking up a few neighbors and most definitely waking up Lizz. "LIZZ, COME HELP! _PLEASE_!” 

A frightened Lizz opened the door and gasped when she saw none other than John Arbuckle passed out and bloody in Odee’s arms. 

“What the FUCK, Odee?!” she yelled as she grabbed a first aid kit and her keys, both of which she kept conveniently placed at her door. You never know when your friend’s gonna show up with a half-dead serial killer slung in their arms. At this point, Odee was hyperventilating. She could see the panic on his face, an emotion she'd never seen him express before. 

“I-I’m--I-I d-don’t know what to do, Lizz!” She tugged Odee toward her car hurriedly, trading her keys for John. 

“You drive us while I work on him in the back seat,” she said, already climbing in. Odee got right to it, shaking as the car started and he sped down the street. In the back, Lizz ripped open John’s shirt to see the stab wound, popping open the first aid kit. 

“What did you _do_? And how is _JOHN_ HERE?” she asked as she started applying pressure around the wound to slow as much of the bleeding as she could. Crimson seeped out from John's chest, getting all over Lizz and her back seat. She couldn’t risk removing the knife or he might die right away, so she did what she could for now and hoped for the best. 

“H-H-He--” Odee said, gasping and sniffling. They were almost at the hospital now, but Odee was horrified by the thought that he may become a murderer tonight. Lizz could hear the fear coating his voice, and see it glowing in his wide, tear-filled eyes, and she shook her head. 

“No, don’t explain now,” she followed up. “We just have to get him helped. Don’t worry.” 

Odee parked sloppily in front of the hospital and looked back to see Lizz getting out of the car. She motioned for him to help, and he joined her to lug John off of the seat. They carried him into the building, and a nurse immediately noticed and called for help. A stretcher was brought right away, and they lowered John's limp frame onto it and wheeled him away, several medical professionals murmured to each other. Odee's ears buzzed, and the flickering yellowness of the lights overhead stung his pupils. He felt so far away from himself, like the world was spinning around him. Wait... It _was_ spinning. The last thing he saw was Lizz's worried face, and then he passed out onto the floor. 


	3. Hospital Room

Odee woke up in a hospital bed with no idea of how much time had passed. When he moved, he was hit with a wave of soreness that made him immediately lay back down. His shoulder was bandaged tightly, and the way his wound stung beneath the soft material made him groan. Without the protection of adrenaline coursing through his system, he was now feeling every injury he sustained, and it felt anything but nice. 

Just then, a nurse popped their head through the curtain and saw that he was awake. They smiled at him and entered the small space, clipboard in hand. 

"Glad you're awake," they said, clicking open a pen. "How are you feeling?" 

"I-I'm alright... A little disoriented," Odee said, bringing his hand up to his face to shove his dark hair out of his eyes. "What happened?" 

"Oh, you were losing too much blood. But not to worry! We've gotten you all stitched up." 

Odee didn't want to imagine the bill. Instead, he tried to be glad to just be alive. After all, he had gone head-to-head with a crazy serial killer. What are the chances of him making it out of that alive? But really, John was the one whose life ended up being at stake. Guilt made itself home in Odee's stomach again. 

"Is John Arbuckle alive?" 

The nurse's eyebrows perked up a bit, but a reassuring smile quickly followed. 

"Yes, Mr. Arbuckle will be alright. But you need to focus on resting right now," they said, stern but caring. "Do you need anything to eat? Drink?" 

Odee was suddenly made aware of the hunger pulling at his intestine, along with the dryness in his mouth. He realized he hadn't eaten anything yet. Distraction after distraction had popped up throughout the day, and he just hadn't thought about food at all before now. 

"Could I get some dinner? I know it's late, just... anything to eat. And some water, please." 

"Sure! I'll be back with that for you in a moment," said the nurse, grabbing onto the curtain surrounding the small space. It kept some of the nauseating light out of his eyes, which he was grateful for. The boy was sore, and hungry, and thirsty, but... At least here, he knew he was safe. 

But what does that matter? He still didn't know where Garfeld might be, or if he was even _alive_. How could Odee lay here comfortably while Garfeld could be in danger? He felt his stomach churning and felt tears burning at his eyes again. Just then, he heard a voice from the other side of the curtain around his spot. 

"...Odee? Is that you?" 

The voice was weak, but he still knew who it was. He felt like he could vomit, and he squeezed his eyes shut. Great. So now here he was, laying beside the man he literally tried to murder earlier--and simultaneously the man who's probably killed his closest friend in the world. He didn't know how to feel, so he didn't respond. He'd stayed silent all those years before he started talking, and now was a good time to be quiet again. But his ears picked up on shuffling sheets from the next bed over, and jumped with surprise when his curtain was pulled open from the outside. Odee only looked at John for a second before averting his gaze out of a mix of guilt and disgust. The man looked like a living corpse, with his eyes baggy and bloodshot, his face paled to nearly complete colorlessness. Some bandaging peeked out through his hospital gown, as if to remind Odee that he's the one to blame for it. 

"Are you okay?" John asked, but Odee still refused to look at him, let alone speak to him. John sighed, huffing in pain as he sat up to face Odee better. His whole body felt the pain splitting through it with every little movement, but he was uncertain if he would ever get another chance to talk to Odee. He knew that this might be the last time they ever even _see_ each other. "Odee, I'm... I'm sorry." 

Odee finally looked at him, staring at him through wide, brown eyes. He's sorry...? He's _sorry_?

He couldn't think of any response but to laugh. The sound dripped with weight of every bit of pain Odee felt, every bit of disdain and _hatred_ he had for John. That was all he would let the man have from him. John was silent for a moment, feeling an emotion he wasn't at all familiar with, one he believed he's never felt before today... Guilt. He, the great John Arbuckle, best serial killer to walk this Earth, was ashamed of what he'd done. 

"Garfeld is safe," he said. Odee froze, searching John's face for any hint of dishonesty. 

When he didn't detect any, he apprehensively asked, "He's not hurt, is he?" 

"He's not," John promised, and he was telling the truth. He hadn't had the heart to hurt Garfeld. After all this time, it seemed that John still cared about those two as much as they cared about him, even though all three hated to admit to that. The trio knew each other as family, and it was hard to let go of that kind of relationship. John was basically Garfeld's and Odee's dad, and he absolutely viewed them as his sons while he was raising them. He now realized that any plan he'd ever strung together about how he'd end their lives would've been a failure. He could never kill them.

But despite this, John could see how their relationship must be damaged beyond repair. He had done so much wrong, he had caused so much fear and pain. He had hurt the ones he was supposed to support and protect through everything. Was there really a way to ever make this up to them? 

"Odee, I'll... I'll tell them everything that happened. _Everything_. Garfeld will be brought home safely, and... I'll be out of your hair." 

"...Why are you doing this? I thought you hated me." 

John was silent for a moment, before saying, "I don't hate you, Odee. I don't hate Garfeld, either. You boys are the only friends I ever had." 

Odee was processing what John had said when the nurse returned with his late-night dinner. 

"Here you g--Oh, Mr. Arbuckle! Sir, is--is he bothering you?" 

"Ah, n-no! It's alright," Odee reassured. The nurse looked uneasy, but they just handed him his tray of food. 

"You've got a guest here, too," the nurse said, pointing back towards Lizz. She was glaring at John, who took it as his cue to close the curtain and go back to his business. She went over to Odee's bedside and sat beside him. The nurse spoke quietly when they said, "Odee, if you would like Arbuckle's bed to be moved further from yours, we can do that." 

"It's... It's alright--" 

"What? No, it's not alright. I dunno what bull he spouted to you," Lizz interjected, "but you two need to be away from each other. It's not safe." 

"She does have a point," the nurse agreed with a nod. "It's what would be safest. Odee, does that sound alright to you?" 

"Alright..." 

"Great," said the nurse, leaving while Odee picked at his food. Lizz crossed her legs, getting ready to be settled in here for the night. Usually Garfeld would be the one here by his side, but of course he wasn't here, and Lizz wasn't heartless enough to leave him alone in a hospital after the day he's had. 

There was some faint muttering beside them, followed by the sound of the wheels of John's hospital bed squeaking against the floor. Lizz sighed, feeling more relaxed now that the man who murdered her boyfriend and kidnapped her just months prior was no longer mere feet away. 

"Odee, I still have no clue what's going on," Lizz said. "Care to fill me in a bit?" 

>> "woof woof woof" - odee 2021 


End file.
